The Night Guy Came To Town

September 14, 2023

Southampton Town Hall - 7p.m.-10 p.m.

We want you to dial back the clock to Saturday night, August 1, 1935. A time when sweethearts were re-joined by their loved ones after WW1 and people were still talking about how nice it was to not have to wear masks anymore. This show is a “slice of life” concept. A “snap-shot” of what an evening would have been like at the Dance Pavilion, in the tiny little “trading town” of Southampton, ON, situated on the shores of Great Lake Huron, on Thursday, August 1, 1935, when the Guy Lombardo came to town. Can you imagine the excitement? The Great Depression was in mid-swing and there was talk on CKNX (Wingham) about the man with the funny little moustache over in Germany. For the most part, people were grateful to be alive and they celebrated the “Spirit of Life” by DANCING. Patrons are invited to wear vintage costumes from the era! Dance Classes start at 7 PM, and at 8 PM Guy Lombardo and his orchestra will play the most popular dance songs on the Hit Parade in 1935 and everyone in the audience will be encouraged to DANCE!

Our hosts are the owners of the Lakeside Park Hotel’s Dance Pavilion: Eliza Knowles and her children Irene, Lulu, and Bill (known as “Biscuit” because he loved to eat his mother’s biscuits).

Other main characters are local citizens from Southampton who are portrayed by their bloodline Descendants of today. They are non-actors who will be standing tall to represent their actual Ancestors who would have attended Guy’s dance at the Dance Pavilion.

Musicians who make up Guy’s 12-piece “extended orchestra” (also known as the "Royal Canadians") will be impersonated by local musicians from the Southampton area.